SEND awareness grant scheme

Onkar Sahota: What is the total fund for the SEND awareness grant scheme connected to the London Early Years Campaign?

The Mayor: I recognise the vital importanceof ensuring thatchildren with emerging special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) can access the right support from a young age.
In November, I offered a grant of up to £20,000 to raise awareness of free early education for 2-year-olds amongst families of children with SEND and to improve early identification of children with additional needs. This was awarded toLondon Borough of Islington, who will focus on improving early identification for children with autism. Their project will offer training to early years settings run with the borough’s health partner, Whittington Health. Training will raise awareness about the difficulties associated with autism and strategies to support children into early education. It will emphasise the benefits of free early education, ensuring that early years practitioners can increase parental understanding.
Our existing projectsare already supporting early years children with SEND. For example, my Early Year Hubs have developed and will trial a standard way of sharing information on children with additional needs when they move between early years settings and when they transition to school. This was recommended in the London Assembly’s SEND report. My Wandle Early Years Hub has a focus onimproving early intervention for children with SEND.

GLA-Whole Schools SEND seminar

Jennette Arnold: What were the outcomes and feedback from the GLA-Whole Schools SEND seminar in October 2019 which looked at exclusions and early support?

The Mayor: At this SEND seminar, Joanne McCartney AM, my Deputy Mayor for Education and Childcare, invited school leaders and Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators (SENCOs) to share what it really means to offer the right early support for pupils with SEND. Good practice was shared on the value of a whole school ethos where supporting SEND pupils is everyone’s responsibility. Professor Philip Garner, Brunel University London, presented provisional findings from his research which is collecting evidence related practice from 15 schools that have demonstrated a positive impact on limiting the number of exclusions. Attendees also raised concerns and suggested solutions over the high SENCO workload and the roles status within schools. There was a recognition that Government funding cuts, alongside increasing numbers of SEND pupils, are having a detrimental impact on the support that can be offered. A more detailed summary and keynote presenter slides, are being widely shared with the London education sector and are published at:
https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/education-and-youth/schools-success/schools-success-events-research-and-visits